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Lower back pain & squatting

A few years back, I hurt my back while squatting. I often don't have much
time to workout so probably skipped the warm-up reps like an idiot. I was
lifting heavy and maybe didn't keep my stomach tight and felt a little pain.
I stopped and my lower back hurt whenever I bent at the waist (like when I
try to touch toes) for months. It eventually went away.

Cut to present day. In another retarded moment, I went heavy on the squat
without warm-up. Was doing a set of 6 near my max and lost form on the 5th
or so and felt some pain in my back. Sure enough, I reinjured my back and it
has been hurting for the last two months or so.

I've not been working the squat or any lower back/compound leg exercise
since. Once the pain seems to get better, I'll go over and squat the bar for
20 reps to give it a stretch and feel it out. But the pain keeps coming back
whenever I do something with my lower back without warm-up (even picking up
something in the morning).

Anyway, I'm hoping the some of you have a suggestion on something I can do
to heal and then strengthen this back problem. Obviously I need to make sure
my squat form is 100%. But is there anything that I can do to help the back
heal faster? I do unweighted back-bends which help stretch it out. I'll also
do a series of back stretches before I do any workout. This helps by
relaxing my back but hasn't seemed to make it any better.

DH wrote:
A few years back, I hurt my back while squatting. I often don't have much
time to workout so probably skipped the warm-up reps like an idiot. I was
lifting heavy and maybe didn't keep my stomach tight and felt a little pain.
I stopped and my lower back hurt whenever I bent at the waist (like when I
try to touch toes) for months. It eventually went away.

Cut to present day. In another retarded moment, I went heavy on the squat
without warm-up. Was doing a set of 6 near my max and lost form on the 5th
or so and felt some pain in my back. Sure enough, I reinjured my back and it
has been hurting for the last two months or so.

Quit skipping warm-ups, OK.
I've not been working the squat or any lower back/compound leg exercise
since. Once the pain seems to get better, I'll go over and squat the bar for
20 reps to give it a stretch and feel it out. But the pain keeps coming back
whenever I do something with my lower back without warm-up (even picking up
something in the morning).

Anyway, I'm hoping the some of you have a suggestion on something I can do
to heal and then strengthen this back problem. Obviously I need to make sure
my squat form is 100%. But is there anything that I can do to help the back
heal faster? I do unweighted back-bends which help stretch it out. I'll also
do a series of back stretches before I do any workout. This helps by
relaxing my back but hasn't seemed to make it any better.
ideas?

Consider a chiro adjustment and slowly strengthen your back with
hyperextensions. Do warm-up sets and add a little weight if you
can. Strengthen abs as well if you aren't doing so.

"DH" wrote in message
...
A few years back, I hurt my back while squatting. I often don't have
much
time to workout so probably skipped the warm-up reps like an idiot. I
was
lifting heavy and maybe didn't keep my stomach tight and felt a little
pain.
I stopped and my lower back hurt whenever I bent at the waist (like
when I
try to touch toes) for months. It eventually went away.

Cut to present day. In another retarded moment, I went heavy on the
squat
without warm-up. Was doing a set of 6 near my max and lost form on the
5th
or so and felt some pain in my back. Sure enough, I reinjured my back
and it
has been hurting for the last two months or so.

I've not been working the squat or any lower back/compound leg
exercise
since. Once the pain seems to get better, I'll go over and squat the
bar for
20 reps to give it a stretch and feel it out. But the pain keeps
coming back
whenever I do something with my lower back without warm-up (even
picking up
something in the morning).

Anyway, I'm hoping the some of you have a suggestion on something I
can do
to heal and then strengthen this back problem. Obviously I need to
make sure
my squat form is 100%. But is there anything that I can do to help the
back
heal faster? I do unweighted back-bends which help stretch it out.
I'll also
do a series of back stretches before I do any workout. This helps by
relaxing my back but hasn't seemed to make it any better.

ideas?

You might try Good Mornings, going only as far as you can go while
keeping your back tight, and starting with no weight at all, not even an
empty bar. Great way to learn to feel when your back is tight and when
it's not. I'm a much better deadlifter than I am a squatter (which
isn't saying a whole lot, anyway), so I'm biased, but I find it much
easier to keep track of the tightness of my abs and lower back when I'm
deadlifting than when I'm squatting.

You make a very good point about stretches, by the way - they'll make
you feel better but they won't solve the problem for most people.
You've got to strengthen your lower back and learn to keep it and your
belly tight. And definitely add ab work to your program if you haven't
already, but I would always save it for last so you can use your abs as
needed during deadlifts and squats. More info about me, my back
problems, and my lifting on the site in my sig below.

"DH" wrote in message
...
A few years back, I hurt my back while squatting. I often don't have much
time to workout so probably skipped the warm-up reps like an idiot. I was
lifting heavy and maybe didn't keep my stomach tight and felt a little
pain.
I stopped and my lower back hurt whenever I bent at the waist (like when I
try to touch toes) for months. It eventually went away.

Cut to present day. In another retarded moment, I went heavy on the squat
without warm-up. Was doing a set of 6 near my max and lost form on the 5th
or so and felt some pain in my back. Sure enough, I reinjured my back and
it
has been hurting for the last two months or so.

I've not been working the squat or any lower back/compound leg exercise
since. Once the pain seems to get better, I'll go over and squat the bar
for
20 reps to give it a stretch and feel it out. But the pain keeps coming
back
whenever I do something with my lower back without warm-up (even picking
up
something in the morning).

Anyway, I'm hoping the some of you have a suggestion on something I can do
to heal and then strengthen this back problem. Obviously I need to make
sure
my squat form is 100%. But is there anything that I can do to help the
back
heal faster? I do unweighted back-bends which help stretch it out. I'll
also
do a series of back stretches before I do any workout. This helps by
relaxing my back but hasn't seemed to make it any better.

ideas?

Dude. Been there, done that. Many times. I once blew out my back putting
on my socks!

1. Warm up before squats is critical. Stretch. Get on your stomach and
stretch your lower back till you can raise yourself totally on your hands.
Then, get in a fetal position and stretch. Repeat above. You should feel
your spinea erectors (sp?) bigtime. Don't forget to stretch your hams,
groin, quads, etc... you need them all in a squat.

2. You're probably in too deep. Start with light weights. Add 5-10 lbs a
workout or two. It'll only take a few weeks before you're in heavy and
feeling it.

3. Stiff legged deads are great for the erectors. The more you curve your
back in the lift the more you'll work it. Learn to do them. But don't go
overboard again.

4. Weak abs can also contribute to lower back pain. Work 'em. A good,
easy way to work the lower abs is sucking in your belly button to your spine
as you walk. Try it.

"Brad" wrote in message news:[email protected]
"DH" wrote in message
...
A few years back, I hurt my back while squatting. I often don't have much
time to workout so probably skipped the warm-up reps like an idiot. I was
lifting heavy and maybe didn't keep my stomach tight and felt a little
pain.
I stopped and my lower back hurt whenever I bent at the waist (like when I
try to touch toes) for months. It eventually went away.

Cut to present day. In another retarded moment, I went heavy on the squat
without warm-up. Was doing a set of 6 near my max and lost form on the 5th
or so and felt some pain in my back. Sure enough, I reinjured my back and
it
has been hurting for the last two months or so.

I've not been working the squat or any lower back/compound leg exercise
since. Once the pain seems to get better, I'll go over and squat the bar
for
20 reps to give it a stretch and feel it out. But the pain keeps coming
back
whenever I do something with my lower back without warm-up (even picking
up
something in the morning).

Anyway, I'm hoping the some of you have a suggestion on something I can do
to heal and then strengthen this back problem. Obviously I need to make
sure
my squat form is 100%. But is there anything that I can do to help the
back
heal faster? I do unweighted back-bends which help stretch it out. I'll
also
do a series of back stretches before I do any workout. This helps by
relaxing my back but hasn't seemed to make it any better.

ideas?

I have a severe lumbar scoliosis, which doesn't bother me 90% of the
time. But occasionally the discs slip around and the degree of the
curve gets worse and I'm in some pain. A PT advised me that whenever
this (or any low back pain) happens I should immediately stop doing
regular squats for as long as it takes to heal, and instead to
substitute dumbell squats with my back supported by a Resistaball
against the wall, high reps and do it as often as every other day.

I also like to set up a session with a good trainer every few months
to critique my squat & DL form and work on perfecting it. It's so easy
to slip into bad habits, and helps to have an objective set of
eyeballs to spot where I'm getting sloppy.

DH wrote:
A few years back, I hurt my back while squatting. I often don't have
much time to workout so probably skipped the warm-up reps like an
idiot. I was lifting heavy and maybe didn't keep my stomach tight and
felt a little pain. I stopped and my lower back hurt whenever I bent
at the waist (like when I try to touch toes) for months. It
eventually went away.

Cut to present day. In another retarded moment, I went heavy on the
squat without warm-up. Was doing a set of 6 near my max and lost form
on the 5th or so and felt some pain in my back. Sure enough, I
reinjured my back and it has been hurting for the last two months or
so.

ideas?
I see more people curl under at the bottom of a squat, exposing their back
to injury.
I have suffered back pain on and off for the better part of my life. The
best my back has felt is when I deadlift often. If I take off deadlifting
for whatever reason, the start of the symptoms return. That is, if I stand
in one place too long I ache, etc.
I suggest slow consistant loading via deadlift. This is to say, with the
appropriate amount of warm up. start with a silly low weight according to
your perceived capabilities. progress slowly. slower than you think. When
I started, I started with 135. WAAAAAAAAAAAY underneath what I thought I
could do. As your body adapts and learns to lift, your back will accustomed
to bearing the weight. When I learned how to deadlift without using any
lumbar movement, the progress really took off. This will carry over into
real life nicely. When you learn to lift without using lumbar spine motion,
you will be able to toy with weights that were previously difficult because
of a "weak back"
Another addition is the single leg knee raise on a foam roller. easy to do.
Lie on kiddie pool noodle floatie, flattening the back against the roller
placed along the spine. Both feet flat on floor, so yes the knees are bent.
Perform reps on side at a time. This one has really helped me. every morni
ng
Dr. Marjorie King has had tremendous success with this.

Another exercise I added is body weight squats. Weight heavy on the heels
deep descent, butt to ankles. maintain weight on heels throught depth. I
use a railing to lean back as much as necessary. started with 20, now up to
200. I froze the reps there.

You may always have a vulnerable back. prepare and prevent. Good luck.